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Photo of the Day

The Ha-Ha Is Underway November 1 - Heading south Whew!! What we have gone through to get some pictures to our website from the Baja Ha-Ha is way too depressing to share - but they made it! (Well, some of them anyway!) Stay tuned for more, and please be patient as we work through the bugs and offer as many daily updates to our website as possible. Photo Latitude 38

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Weather Updates

November - Pacific and Atlantic Oceans

Tropical Weather

Are any hurricanes going to affect the Ha-Ha? You can check on the Mexico hurricane region at http://weather.unisys.com/hurricane/e_pacific/2000/index.html.

It continues to be calm in the Atlantic/Caribbean.

San Francisco Bay Weather

To see what the winds are like on the Bay and just outside the Gate right now, check out http://sfports.wr.usgs.gov/wind/.

California Coast Weather

Looking for current as well as recent wind and sea readings from 17 buoys and stations between Pt. Arena and the Mexican border? Here's the place - which has further links to weather buoys and stations all over the U.S.: www.ndbc.noaa.gov/stuff/southwest/swstmap.shtml. Also check out http://facs.scripps.edu/surf/buoylist.html (but note that the Java Applet is still not working with some browsers on Macs - including your Webmistress's Netscape Communicator!)

Pacific Ocean Weather

You can view the University of Hawaii Department of Meteorology satellite picture by clicking here.

Pacific Sea State

Seas are normal in the Pacific, but you might check at: http://www.mpc.ncep.noaa.gov/RSSA/PacRegSSA.html.
For another view, see http://www.oceanweather.com/data/global.html.

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Cruising

Keep 'em coming!

While the Baja Ha-Ha is underway, our cruising section will be on hiatus, but we'd still love to hear from you...so keep your pictures and stories coming!

Baja Ha-Ha Coverage November 1 - 125 nautical miles southeast of San Diego The seventh annual 750-mile Baja Ha-Ha Cruiser's Rally from San Diego to Cabo San Lucas started yesterday off Point Loma under sunny skies with five to seven knots of wind. The 112 starters ranged in length from 27 to 94 feet, with a total of 430 crew. Eight of the starters were catamarans, two were motoryachts. The wind built slightly in the afternoon, but never over 12 knots. Spinnakers blossomed near the Coronado Islands as the wind came aft, but a cross swell reduced their effectiveness. As often happens off Mexico, the wind died almost completely during the middle of the night. Some of the fleet began to motor but those who hung in there were rewarded with a light but steady breeze shortly after dawn. At 0930 on Wednesday, 'Profligate' is moving at seven to nine knots under a light chute. The sun is out, the skies are blue, and Michelle, the Kiwi, has already taken a morning swim. Wish you were here. The Ha-Ha festivities started on Sunday with the big West Marine Kick-Off and Costume Party BBQ at Cabrillo Isle Marina in San Diego. The costumes were great and the spirit was even better. - The Grand Poobah reporting from aboard 'Profligate'.

Ha-Ha Note: We plan to bring you almost-daily coverage of the rally, but are literally having 'technical difficulty'. Check our website for our progress in receiving the much anticipated (by us too!) pictures of the Ha-Ha as it's happening. (To get your fix on the days we are unable to update our site, peruse our archives.)

YOTREPS

November 1 - The Pacific Ocean and Cyberspace

Who is out making passages in the Pacific and what kind of weather are they having? Check out YOTREPS - 'yacht reports' - at http://www.bitwrangler.com/yotreps/

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Racing

Great Pumpkin Regatta

October 28-29 - Richmond Yacht Club Happiness is a warm gun - Cam "Not That One" Lewis, one of Monterey Bay's most talented sailors, took the gun in Sunday's Richmond YC-hosted Great Pumpkin Pursuit Race. Sailing his J/22 'Tinseltown Rebellion' with Karen Loutzenheiser and Matt Seifenzahl, Cam topped the second boat - Gary Albright's J/22 'Talisman Banana' by a comfortable 21 seconds. Rounding out the top ten: 'Twilight Zone' (Merit 25), 'Toucan' (J/22), 'Gruntled' (Moore 24), 'Redhawk' (Hawkfarm), 'Gone Too Farr' (Farr 40), 'Bullseye' (N/M 50), 'Blue Chip' (Farr 40), and 'Flyer' (Farr 40). Sunday's race around Alcatraz and Angel islands was delightful, almost making up for the thoroughly wet and miserable weather experienced during Saturday's three one design races. Results of the buoy racing portion of The Pumpkin will be posted "in about a week" at www.ryc.org. Saturday's other Halloween event - Tiburon YC's PHRF-oriented Red Rock Regatta - was canceled due to the rain and high winds. Pumpkin sampler, clockwise from top left: 'Tinseltown Rebellion' crossing the finish line; "We won!"; The soft parade; 'Talisman Banana' was the bridesmaid; Clown alley; Farr 40s 'Flyer' and 'Blue Chip'. All photos Latitude/Rob

Grand Prix Bytes The illbruck Challenge and Duesseldorf YC just announced the first-ever German America's Cup campaign, to be led by 36-year-old Marin County superstar John Kostecki. Though Herr Kostecki and the illbruck Challenge are the odds-on favorite to win the next Volvo Round the World Race, their foray into the 2003 America's Cup is apparently more of a one-boat, long-term approach to winning the Cup sometime further down the road. Another Bay Area sailor, Matt Ciesicki, has joined illbruck Challenge in a management role. . . The start of the fourth Vendée Globe is scheduled for November 5 in Les Sables d'Olonne, France, with 24 boats expected to take a shot at the 106-day record. No Americans will race - in fact, only one American, the late Mike Plant, has ever competed in this grueling non-stop circumnavigation. However, Bay Area 'soloist' Bruce Schwab is on scene at the 'Vendée Village' and will be sending us pictures and reports from the start. See www.vendeeglobe.com for more details about the upcoming race (hit the British flag for the English version).

Bruce and 24-year-old British media darling Ellen MacArthur ('Kingfisher'). Zut alors! One of the many vendor booths in the 'Vendee Village' was selling chocolate Open 60s, complete with bulb keels!